


paint on spring

by dearlyuta



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Roommates/Housemates, Domestic Fluff, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, Fluff, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-10
Updated: 2018-10-10
Packaged: 2019-07-29 01:44:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,940
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16254134
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dearlyuta/pseuds/dearlyuta
Summary: Renjun is convinced that Jeno and him are better off as ex-roommates, seeing that all they do is fight all the time.That is, until Renjun realizes that he misses Jeno.Quite a lot, in fact.





	paint on spring

**Author's Note:**

> inspired by this [prompt](https://twitter.com/renjunflairs/status/1042754451772125195) from twitter. i did tweak it a bit so it might be different. this isn't proofread so please excuse any mistakes that you might come across. i hope you enjoy reading!
> 
> title is taken from martin smith's paint on spring!

Renjun should never have agreed to exchange rooms with Jaemin.

To be fair, he did owe Donghyuck a favor for saving his ass when he had to do an impromptu presentation way back in high school. Renjun was unfortunately the chosen one to go and run a presentation about the Chemistry lesson they had the day before — he was nervous with anxiety swirling deep in his stomach. He didn't have any notes that day because he spent that class half-listening and promptly falling asleep on his desk halfway through.

Donghyuck, being the amazing best friend he is, stepped in and told their teacher that he really wants to present instead since he _loved_ that lesson. Which is obviously a blatant lie, seeing how he didn't have any idea what he was talking about the moment he stepped up front but still, he saved Renjun's ass from getting sent to the detention room for apparently _not listening well in class._

Donghyuck forgot about it though so Renjun really thought that he would be able to breathe easily and move on, especially now that they're in university and they didn't really need to focus on that anymore. That is, until Donghyuck came rushing back to their dorm one afternoon, cheeks flushed and practically on his knees already as he begged Renjun to exchange rooms with Jaemin, his boyfriend.

He obviously said _no_ since he didn't really know who the hell Jaemin's roommate was and he wanted to keep it that way as much as possible. Also, Donghyuck is a decent roommate and he understands Renjun easily whenever the older boy wants to be left alone to paint silently in front of his canvas. There's no other roommate that would tolerate the way he accidentally leaves his paint at the desk or on the coffee table in front of the couch or how there seems to be an endless supply of shredded paper with lines drawn on them.

"Please, Injun! Remember what I did for you back in high school?" Renjun stiffened by then, cheeks flushed as his mind immediately started to sift through his memories until it pulled a forgotten scene of his younger self — nervous, shaking whilst he thumbed through his empty notebook and an all too eager Donghyuck raising his hand from the other end of the room, proclaiming that the lesson about electronegativity and ionization is the best thing in the universe.

He ended up eliciting a tired, deep sigh, expression weary as he held up his hands in surrender. He can't believe he's willing to give up his dorm room that already feels familiar and at home for him.

"Fine." Donghyuck practically jumped into his arms by then, clearly excited since he can spend more time with his boyfriend now and because _Renjun, you're such a great best friend, I swear._

Yes, Renjun is really the world's greatest best friend, especially now that he has to tolerate Lee Jeno's annoying ass.

-

"God, Lee," Renjun scowls in disgust, fingers lightly brushing against the messy stack of dirty plates in the sink before he winces almost immediately when the tower nearly tips over, almost crashing and breaking on the wooden flooring. He jumps back, holding his hand against his chest as he directs his gaze to Jeno's room, eyes narrowed into a menacing glare.

"This is the fifth fucking time since I asked you to wash your damn dishes this week! Can you stop leaving your disgusting things lying around here?" There's a muffled reply coming from the rooms before the sound of feet angrily pounding against the floor resounds in the tense atmosphere. Jeno, dressed in a black sleeveless shirt and ripped jeans, has a similar frown drawn across his lips as he holds out his notebook dripping with mixed paint of different shades of blue.

"Guess what I have here, Huang?" Renjun rolls his eyes at him, the annoyance evident on his expression as he eyes the notebook with the same amount of disgust directed at the dirty plates he was staring at a while ago. He can see faint pen marks scrawled along the pages, disappearing beneath the flood of blues and blurring out the words.

"What the hell is that?" Jeno stares at him, expression morphing into bewilderment before he hastily waves the notebook in front of his face, the soaked pages sending drops of blue paint across Renjun's face.

"For someone who's taking Neuroscience, you're a goddamn idiot," Renjun feels his frown go deeper, more irritated than what he usually feels whenever he has arguments with Jeno. Imagine being called an idiot by your roommate who either sleeps in class or skipping them in favor of playing video games with your friends — that's so offensive for Renjun who works hard in every class he's thrown in.

He's not even taking up Neuroscience, for god's sake. He's an art major and it's getting annoying how Jeno keeps somehow assuming that he's taking a course like that — damn, he's not even that good at Science in the first place.

"You left your damn paint in my desk again! What the hell do I use to write my notes now?"

"You actually write notes and listen in class?" Renjun mocks him, letting out a gasp and covering his mouth with his hands. Jeno looks more pissed off now, hand crumpling up the soaked pages of the notebooks, leaving evident streak of blue paint across his palm.

"Fuck you." Jeno halts for a moment before he hastily crosses the distance between them, leaving no personal space for Renjun to think about what's happening. He tries to take a step back but Jeno is too fast — his hand curls around Renjun's collar before he slams the soaked pages right at the front of his clean white button-up shirt.

"What the hell?!" Renjun screams, throwing the notebook off his shirt before the blue paint has already soaked on his clothing — lines of blue written across and down on it. He can also spot the faint blue palm mark right by his collar and he can't help but scowl.

Jeno is snickering, already stepping away even before Renjun can grab hold of him and do the same. He hurriedly runs straight out of the dorm room, his fading laughter cutting through the tense, angry atmosphere as his sneakers resound against the wooden flooring, leaving Renjun glaring at him from behind.

That damn coward.

-

"I—"

"Hate Jeno, I get it." Renjun huffs, dropping his body on the chair, clearly annoyed. Donghyuck, his best friend since high school and basically the only one willing to tolerate his angry rants about his roommate, flashes a grin at him, stretching out his legs comfortably under the table and accidentally knocking Renjun's feet. The older boy sends a kick down his legs, making Donghyuck yelp before his lower lip juts out into a pout.

"What did he do this time?" Donghyuck winces as he moves his legs back to his own respective space while Renjun stays seated, glaring holes right at their table. He grabs hold of his iced coffee, sipping on the beverage before he speaks up again, his anger slowly fading away for a moment.

"That goddamn lazy ass keeps leaving his dishes in the sink. God, it wouldn't take too long to wash them! He keeps leaving his stuff lying around, it's just so annoying." Renjun nearly crushes his own cup before relaxing after taking a deep breath, putting it down as the coffee sloshes around in the container.

"Um, to be fair, you're the type to leave your paint right by his desk so he always ends up with his books getting splattered with them."

"Not my fault that he keeps spilling them. He's such an idiot, he keeps assuming the fact that I'm taking up Neuroscience just because I helped Nana once in his homework." Renjun grumbles, crossing his arms over his chest. Donghyuck arches a brow and that seems to make Renjun tone down his anger, resolving to release it by huffing and mumbling incoherent curse words under his breath.

"Stop being so worked up over him. Only a few more days and you guys will stop being at each other's throats." Renjun opens his mouth, ready to throw another snarky remark but decides against it, lips sealed tightly as another frown writes itself on the corners.

"That's the only reason why I'm still alive and breathing," The older boy heaves a dramatic sigh, shoulders dropping and relaxing to display his relief about the situation, "Knowing that I don't have to see his ugly face the moment I wake up."

"So, that's it? You're not even happy that we'll get to be roommates again? We were literally the first and best duo out there!" Donghyuck pretends to wipe away his tears, sniffling loudly, "I mean, I get it, you're secretly in love with Jeno and you're actually heartbroken about moving out so—"

"Shut up, you're just going to drag Nana in our room and make-out with him." Renjun throws a wad of tissues at his direction, bursting into a fit of laughter when Donghyuck juts out his lower lip to resemble a pout.

"Not true!"

"You've been literally all over him ever since you two got together last year, it makes me so lonely." Donghyuck immediately brightens up at the sound of his words, lips already parting to let the words flow out but Renjun stops him short, slapping his mouth with another tissue.

"No, shut up, I'm not going to end up dating Jeno." The name slips out easily from his lips and for some reason, his cheeks color themselves into a pretty red tint. It's been too long since he called his roommate by his first name and honestly, the syllables feel foreign yet familiar when they roll off his tongue.

Donghyuck wiggles his brows at him, eyes crinkling as he grins, pushing Renjun's hand away.

"So, you're back on a first name basis now? Aw, that's so cu—"

Renjun thinks that Donghyuck deserved to be slapped again with a wad of tissues, just to make him shut his mouth.

-

Renjun pushes the last box out of the door room, an excited bounce in his steps. Jeno is hanging around by the doorway, arms crossed over his chest while watching the smaller boy struggle with fixing his art materials and stuffing his textbooks in his backpack.

"Finally, you're done," Jeno deadpans, raising a brow at him once Renjun finally drags his backpack out in the hallway, "we don't have to see each other anymore."

"Thank god, I don't have to see your annoying ass the moment I wake up." Renjun rolls his eyes as he slings one of the straps of his backpack over his shoulder, narrowing his eyes at the taller boy. To his surprise, a grin graces easily on the corners of Jeno's lips, arms still crossed over his chest as he leans in close, invading Renjun's personal space again.

He's stunned all over again — it's been a long while since Jeno ever smiled at him like that. The last time he saw it, Renjun doesn't hate him at all and even thanked the stars that Jaemin's roommate is well, attractive _and_ hot. Jeno was still that sweetheart that everyone claimed him to be, a perfect boyfriend material that can sweep everyone off their feet by simply flashing them the sweetest smile.

But just a day after that, Jeno became rude to him with a permanent scowl always crossing his lips because he hates Renjun and his annoying habit of leaving his paint around in the most random places. Renjun decided that he hates Jeno too, even though sometimes, he just wants to sit around and admire how attractive Jeno is.

"Don't miss me too much." Jeno's voice is sickeningly sweet, eyes crinkling so nicely that it manages to steal the breath out of Renjun's lungs. His cheeks are burning but he ignores it as he steps away abruptly, trying his best to scowl once again just to show that he isn't affected by Jeno's overwhelming presence.

"You think that I'll miss you? What a narcissistic asshole."

"Still feisty as always." Jeno rolls his eyes, finally stepping back into the room easily as he arches a brow at the smaller boy, a small, sincere smile curling just at the edges of his lips before the door slams right at Renjun's face. He jumps back in shock, wincing as he runs a palm down his cheek, an irritated groan easily slipping past his parted lips. He didn't even realize that he's been holding his breath until his lungs grow weary, forcing himself to take a deep breath.

Renjun's gaze flickers over to the boxes and he heaves a sigh, shoulders already dropping. He actually asked Jeno a moment ago if he can help him in moving out but Jeno, keeping up his asshole act, only laughed loudly then slammed the door to his face as well.

God, at least he doesn't have to share a dorm with that asshole.

-

"Oh no, Nana is leaving today." The words leave Donghyuck's lips, followed immediately with a whine ripping out of his throat. Renjun heaves a sigh, wiping away the beads of sweat that formed on his forehead with the back of his arm as he carries the two boxes to his old, vacant room.

"I'm fine, by the way!" Renjun yells out, dropping the boxes on the floor before he comes back out, shoulders dropped whilst wearing an exhausted look, "I'm totally psyched to be your roommate again, best friend!"

Donghyuck juts out his lower lip in a pout, sensing Renjun's slight bitterness lying underneath his words. He holds out his arms at the older boy, gesturing him to come forward and give him a tight hug. Renjun wants to throw a tantrum at first, huffing loudly for some exaggeration but he gives in too easily, running straight into Donghyuck's arms to embrace his torso tightly.

"I missed you, dumbass." Renjun whines and Donghyuck rolls his eyes, bringing their glued bodies to the couch. They stumble clumsily on the furniture and Donghyuck ends up yelping, losing his footing as he accidentally drops Renjun, making the older boy trip and accidentally roll off the couch and drop to the floor with a dull thud echoing in the room.

"What the hell, is that your revenge for making— ow, that hurts— Jaemin exchange with me again?!" Renjun winces, sitting from the floor as he runs a hand down on the lower half of his back, massaging the sore part. Donghyuck has the decency to look apologetic and embarrassed, flashing a smile at him before holding a hand out. Renjun gratefully takes it, another scream stuck at his throat when Donghyuck abruptly pulls him up, completely forgetting how light Renjun is and making him faceplant right on the couch.

"Oh, oops."

"Yeah, oops." Renjun grumbles, choosing to stand up on wobbly legs and finally taking a proper seat on the couch, head falling on his best friend's shoulder. Donghyuck excitedly wraps an arm around his shoulder, giving him a tight squeeze that steals Renjun's breath away quite literally, leaving him coughing and pounding at his own chest with his closed fist.

"Come on, let's celebrate!"

"Don't you have a presentation to do next week?"

"Who cares?" Donghyuck pulls up again, more careful this time before pushing him in the direction of the front door, eyes crinkling as he flashes a grin, "I'm finally rooming with my best friend again! Let's go!"

Renjun doesn't have enough time to react, stumbling on his way to the door as he slips into his shoes while Donghyuck chatters on, clearly excited as he links their arms together. It hit Renjun a few moments later, when they're out of the dormitory building and the wind wraps them up in a cold, cold embrace, his gaze flickering over to his best friend that he _does_ miss being like this with Donghyuck.

He finds the corners of his lips lifting themselves up to form a sincere smile while he listens to Donghyuck ramble on about how his professor is _such an asshole for giving all these projects in a short period of time, I won't even have time to have dates with Nana and hang-out with you!_

Maybe being roommates with Donghyuck is the best decision he has ever made.

-

He's wrong.

He's completely, undeniably wrong.

This might be the worst decision he has ever made in his life.

_EXHIBIT 1:_ _DONGHYUCK_ _AND_ _JAEMIN_ _._

The number of times that he walked on Donghyuck and Jaemin either cuddling so much in front of the television or making out on the couch is way too many. It scarred Renjun to the point that he finally decided to knock, his knuckles loudly rapping against the wooden door and waiting for a minute or two before he grabs hold of the silver doorknob, twisting it and pushing the door open. Ever since then, he just finds Donghyuck and Jaemin trying to act nonchalant about it — faces void of any expression that might give away what happened but it's fairly obvious from the fleeting touches on their arms and the way their gazes meet every now and then that they actually crave being near each other's presence a lot.

God, he can't even imagine that he would reach this kind of point — he didn't even know that he would reach the point that he has to knock before entering his own dorm. But then again, he brought this upon himself, knowing how clingy and touchy both Donghyuck and Jaemin are with each other. He could fall on his knees and beg them to head to Jeno and Jaemin's room instead but he also know that Jeno would just slam the door on their faces the moment he sees them together.

Asshole.

So, he just lets them be, turning a blind eye every time he finds both of them on the couch, giggling and exchanging sweet kisses while trying to study. Besides, being around them is kind of nice since both of them are extremely affectionate and sweet, often clinging to Renjun if there's too much affection running through their veins and it's not enough to just give them to each other.

But it's sometimes suffocating and lonely to be around them, the craving and longing for a significant other too ignites itself in his chest, burning for far too long that no matter how much Renjun tries to shut it down, it doesn't even work. He stays cooped up in his room, reading through art history books and mindlessly sketching out designs from the tip of his pencil.

It's in those moments that he remembers a boy who has the brightest eyes and the sweetest smile in the universe — the same boy who makes his heart skip a beat, even when his heart is buried through layers of never-ending hatred for him. He vaguely remembers how stunned he was when he first saw the way Jeno's eyes light up, the tiny constellations dotted in the brown specks of his eyes were so bright the moment they first met.

He shakes his head, eyes fluttering shut the moment he realizes what he has drawn again. The stars and constellations are present in the drawing again but they're hidden beneath the dark orbs belonging to a beautiful boy that lives at the end of the hallway.

No, he shouldn't be having these feelings.

He hates him after all.

_EXHIBIT 2: LEE_ _JENO_ _._

Renjun isn't one to admit that he's wrong.

But Jeno might be right about the whole missing him so, so much kind of thing. Sure, Renjun might go crazy over Jeno's ridiculous habits of leaving dirty dishes in the sink or constantly forgetting where he put his own things, searching for them relentlessly and even accusing Renjun one time because he might have stolen his book.

Renjun had stared at him incredulously, blinking fast and wondered if he's really rooming with a law student that seems to be smart, even if he falls asleep in class. Jeno eventually found his book under the sink and Renjun never got the apology that he thinks he deserves so he decides that Jeno's asshole points just went beyond a hundred already.

But even after all that, he kind of likes falling asleep to Jeno softly humming in the other room, fingers rhythmically tapping against his desk while he studies late at night. He also likes it when he accidentally falls asleep on the couch with cheeks and fingers streaked with paint and Jeno would gently wrap him up in a warm blanket, making sure not to wake him up. Jeno probably thinks that he succeeded all the time but honestly, Renjun is awake most of the time, head spinning but definitely awake.

It's those moments that Renjun wonders if he's just being too harsh on Jeno — is he the asshole in the situation? It might be. He often feels guilty over it but soon, Jeno would drive him up the wall by doing one of his ludicrous and annoying habits again and Renjun would start raising his voice at him because god, Jeno is just so stubborn.

But he admits that he does miss Jeno.

Sometimes.

Maybe he just misses the way Jeno puts him to sleep most of the time. Maybe he's just adjusting again — it's been months of listening to Jeno humming and having him get tucked to bed with a blanket safely wrapped around his tiny figure. Of course he would need time to get used to the sound of the television playing on low volume with Jaemin and Donghyuck trying to keep their voices soft so they wouldn't disturb Renjun.

Maybe that can be his new lullaby again. He doesn't need Jeno. Heck, he's sure that he doesn't miss him anymore too.

Yes, that's exactly it.

-

Renjun is exhausted, shoulders dropping as he carries his canvas back to the dorm, torn between wanting to throw his month-long project on the ground the moment he steps in or quietly put it aside, just at the darkest corner of his room, never to see the daylight again. But the moment he pushes the door open without knocking and find Jaemin with his arms thrown around Donghyuck, lips puckered up playfully as if asking for a kiss, he ends up hastily shutting it.

He doesn't get to do anything with his canvas, carrying it as he turns on his heel and walking in the opposite direction, a direction that he knows all too well. He lets his feet take him up to the end of the hallway, head spinning from too many thoughts swirling around.

His knuckles are already rapping against the wooden door when he's pulled out of his thoughts and thrown back to reality. He's honestly ready to drop his canvas and run back to his own room but _fuck,_ the door has already swung open and Jeno is staring at him with his trademark frown, a brow arched in surprise and inquisitiveness.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Jeno sounds annoyed, words drawing out too fast from his lips, as if he's in a hurry. Renjun, for some reason, feels ashamed and small right before him, cheeks heating up in embarrassment as his gaze drops the ground instead. He has always noticed that Jeno stands taller than him since the moment they met but he wasn't intimidated back then — he's not exactly sure why he's feeling like that now though.

"Um," Renjun pursues his lips, gaze finally flickering up as he flashes a bright smile at the taller boy, praying to the stars that he can charm Jeno right off his feet, "can I stay over?"

"What?" Jeno furrows his brows in confusion as he pushes the door more, body leaning out and Renjun takes a step back, as if out of instinct and habit. He blinks rapidly, cheeks dusted with pink as he loses the small amount of courage that burst in his chest.

"Hyuck and Nana are in my dorm and... yeah," His voice trails off and he clears his throat, cheeks painted with a pretty red tint to show off his embarrassment. Jeno is staring at him with knitted brows, silent but his starry eyes filled with nothing but amusement.

"And?"

"They're probably making out," Renjun winces as he holds onto his canvas, his backpack hitting his arm lightly as he moves a little closer to the door with his voice dropping into a pleading tone, "can I stay over for a while?"

Renjun is too embarrassed to admit this but he imagined this kind of scenario too many times — it always seems to end with Jeno either telling him to go away or him laughing then slamming the door once again at Renjun's face. He fully expected those kind of reactions, heart beating too fast against his rib cage as his hold on his canvas unknowingly tightens.

He never thought that this would happen though.

"Come in then," Jeno's voice is strangely warm and Renjun gazes at him for a beat too long, seeing a flicker of happiness passing through his dark orbs before it dissipates into nothingness. He must have imagined it.

Renjun hesitates, holding himself back and Jeno slips back into the old version that Renjun knows all too well, eyes rolling as his fingers circle around Renjun's wrist to pull him in.

"Just for a few hours." There's an edge of warning at Jeno's tone but Renjun is too elated to notice it, happiness bubbling in his chest. He flashes a an excited smile at Jeno, stepping into the dorm that he knows all too well, head spinning once again.

"Okay."

-

If Renjun's being honest, he didn't really mean for it to happen. He was just too exhausted from painting all day in class and his head was pounding from too many thoughts swirling around, constantly breaking any coherent trail of sentences and words.

He fell asleep right by the couch, hugging his sketchbook against his chest with the tips of his fingers still streaked with dry green and blue paint. He really meant to get up from the couch the moment the clock hits nine in the evening but Jaemin still isn't around fifteen minutes before that. He figured that he'll close his eyes for a moment, dipping into a senseless daydream.

The next time his eyes flutter open, he's still on the couch and the lights are already turned off. He really meant to get up by then, head inclining a bit as he blinks but he's stopped short when a warm hand presses down at his side. His breath hitches in his throat when he feels a blanket wrapped securely around his figure, a familiar feeling of bubbling happiness traveling through his veins and circulating throughout his entire body.

The hesitation stays still in the air before he feels a hand brushing away his fringe. His eyes flutter shut immediately, heart pounding relentlessly against his rib cage as the heat crawls to his cheeks.

Jeno hums softly, thinking that Renjun must be deep in dreamland so he gently pats his cheek in such an affectionate manner that it sends a jolt of shock throughout Renjun's body, surprised at the sudden change in Jeno. He stays frozen in the couch while Jeno quietly leaves, feet softly padding against the floor before the gentle sound of the door shutting firmly with a soft click resounds in the silent air.

Renjun lets out a breath that he didn't even realize that he's holding.

What the hell just happened?

-

Renjun and Jeno never really talked about what happened that night — they're back to completely ignoring each other's existence whenever they pass by each other in the dormitory hallway. But even if none of them ever brought it up again, Renjun still thinks about it all too often. His cheeks are dusted with pink every time the memory passes through his mind, a strange sense of longing residing in his chest the more he thinks about it.

He slept so peacefully that night, blanket wrapped firmly around his figure as he listens to the way Jeno hummed to a familiar tune from his room, the sound echoing in a muffled kind of way but still beautiful nonetheless. But the moment the dawn slips through the cracks of the night, Renjun went straight out of the dorm with burning cheeks and a shiver running down his spine as he hurries back to his new dorm, feet softly pattering against the floor.

Jeno never really brought up how Renjun left without saying anything else so he didn't really feel the need to initiate another conversation again.

"You slept in our dorm?" Jaemin perks up, eyes bright with a mischievous smile gracing the corners of his lips. They're waiting for Donghyuck's last class to end, choosing to spend their time in the little café tucked near their university.

Renjun doesn't even realize that his cheeks are painted with a red tint, embarrassed as he subtly tugs on the strings of his black hoodie. He kind of forgot that Jaemin is actually the first person who noticed the way Renjun used to stare at Jeno dreamily before they ended up arguing, throwing senseless statements and curse words in between. Even when they constantly fought, that didn't stop Jaemin and Donghyuck from declaring the fact that Jeno and Renjun will end up dating before this year ends.

"You wouldn't leave our dorm." Renjun sulks, lower lip jutting out in a pout while Jaemin throws his head back with a melodious laugh leaving his lips, immediately cooing at the smaller boy by pinching his cheek before his hand gets slapped away by the older boy.

"I'm sorry, Hyuck and I are trying to tone it down though," Renjun throws him an unamused look and Jaemin flashes an embarrassed, apologetic smile at his direction before taking a sip of his coffee, "but you know, you're always free to visit my dorm if you don't want to see us."

"But I don't want to see Jeno again!" A whine rips out of Renjun's throat, slamming his hands lightly against the table to display his annoyance at the situation on hand. Jaemin doesn't look affected by it — he's even sporting a teasing smile, the kind of smile that reaches his eyes and makes them crinkle in the nicest way possible.

"First of all, you called him Jeno. I guess you're back on a first name basis now?" Renjun's face immediately heats up upon realizing the slip of tongue, cursing lowly under his breath while Jaemin shoots him another amused grin.

"And second, you were blushing when I mentioned about you sleeping over in my dorm."

"I wasn't!"

"That sounds like something a person in denial would say." Jaemin sing-songs, the edge of his voice dripping with playfulness as he moves the straw around in his cup, taking another sip of the beverage before humming. Renjun huffs, crossing his arms over his chest, cheeks colored with pink once again.

"I don't like him, okay? I hate him."

"Doesn't look like it."

"He hates me." Renjun says, suddenly exasperated over the thought of Jeno hating his sole existence. He has always thought about that since it's been a solid fact ever since he moved in with Jeno before but now that he's actually taking his time to think about it, there's a sharp pain running through his chest in the moment and he feels strangely upset about it. He doesn't even know why he's feeling like this because he's supposed to be reciprocating the same feelings Jeno is showing to him.

"Doesn't look like it either." Jaemin's voice is soft, smooth, and reassuring, head tilting to the side as the corners of his lips slowly lift themselves into a smile. There's a stretch of silence between them before Jaemin breaks it with a deep sigh escaping his mouth, his hand pushing away the nearly empty cup before he gazes at Renjun.

"Come on, I've seen the way you two lit up the moment you met each other. I'm surprised that both of you started arguing out of nowhere and this ended up as some big rivalry of who is the worse roommate between you two." Renjun keeps his lips pursued in a thin line, a frown making on the edges of his mouth right after. He can't really get a good grip of that memory of him first meeting Jeno. Their strained relationship feels more like a blur of all their fights and snarky remarks thrown carelessly at each other.

So, really, he can't say that he believes Jaemin's words right now.

But for the sake of the situation, he finds himself simply nodding his head, shrugging his shoulders. As much as he wants to actually put enough hope about the fact that Jeno might actually like him as a friend and not some ex-roommate that he hates so much, the signs are not popping out at all.

Whatever, it's not like he's interested in Jeno, anyway.

-

Renjun kind of blames Donghyuck and Jaemin for planting this whole idea in his head. If the two boys have stopped bringing up how _Jeno is so in love with you too, you know_ kind of thing, he would have brushed away his terribly tangled mess of emotions and just completely ignore Jeno's existence.

But he's here right now, cheeks heating up and staring up at the door. His heart is racing beneath his rib cage as he slowly knocks on the wooden door, the sound of his heartbeat drowning out the noise of feet softly pattering against the floor before the door opens with a small crack as Jeno's head pops out.

As expected, Jeno heaves a tired sigh, eyes subtly rolling as he throws a look of irritation at the older boy.

"What now?" Jeno's voice is filled with venom, anger just reaching at the edges of his tone. Renjun thinks, _this is a fucking bad idea, I should go_ but instead, he stays rooted in his spot with cheeks reddening in embarrassment. He grips the strap of his backpack, squeezing it in his hold before he braves himself to gaze back at Jeno.

"Curfew is going to hit soon and your dorm is much closer than my own," Renjun immediately holds a hand out, stopping Jeno just in time before he can even open his mouth and let the words flow past his lips, "I forgot my key and I'm sure that Hyuck is asleep now so I can't ask him to open the door. Can I stay over for the night?"

Everything that slipped off his tongue is an obvious, blatant lie — words spun around to form such a horrible trail of messy lies. Curfew is still two hours from now and Jeno's dorm is actually much farther compared to his own. Renjun knows that Donghyuck and Jaemin are still wide awake in his dorm, giggling while studying and sharing kisses in between.

God, even someone like Jeno would see right through all his lies and he's doomed to feel the door slam on his face again.

"I, um," Renjun is ready to burst into a fit of awkward laughter, almost spinning on his heel to leave Jeno in the middle of their conversation but he's stopped short when he feels the taller boy's fingers wrapped around his wrist in a comfortable and secure grip. Renjun is so sure that his heart is at his throat and his breath is already stolen away from his lungs the moment Jeno finally heaves a sigh, frown slipping away from his lips and instead, a smile tugs just at the corners.

"Okay, come in then. Nana isn't around either so I guess you can take his room instead."

 _No way_ , Renjun blinks once, twice as he nods numbly, following Jeno inside, _there's no way that this worked._

Even if Renjun likes to refer to Jeno as an idiot, he knows that the other boy is smart enough to pass all his classes with more than acceptable grades so there's no way that he would have bought Renjun's poor excuse of staying over.

But he really can't deny the tiny burst of emotions in his chest when his gaze flickers over to Jeno later, noticing how the corners of his lips curled upwards into a bright smile.

-

Renjun really didn't mean for it to happen.

It starts off with him accidentally leaving a couple of sketches on the couch and his watercolor set. He rummaged through his bag too many times and even turned his room upside down just to carefully sift through his things. But instead, he turned up empty-handed with panic settling in his stomach.

That is, until Jeno passes by him on his way to his first class for the day. Jeno rests a hand down his shoulder to stop him from power walking over to the classroom, his other hand immediately dropping the sketches and the watercolor set in Renjun's palms.

"You forgot this at my dorm." Jeno leaves him abruptly after the words left his lips, rushing to get out of the building to head off to his first class for today. Renjun stays still for a moment, jaw slacked and blushing before he finally snaps back to reality, rushing straight to the room with three minutes to spare.

Right after that, his things randomly get misplaced. He's sure that he didn't leave it in his dorm — hell, he barely goes back to his own room anymore, choosing to constantly bother Jeno and ask him to stay over for the night. The lies that he spins endlessly are getting ridiculous and weird but for some reason, Jeno keeps buying them with no questions asked.

_"The room smells like alcohol so can I stay here for a while?"_

Another obvious lie since the dormitory will never allow them to bring bottles and cans of alcohol, even if their seniors have hit the right age already.

_"Hyuck locked me out again because he wants to spend time with Nana."_

A blatant lie since Renjun knows all too well that Donghyuck and Jaemin are out having a date and his own dorm is empty for once.

_"Hey, it's kind of messy in my dorm now since there's paint all over so can I stay here for a bit?"_

An idiotic lie since Jeno knows that Renjun doesn't really care if his room is splattered with paint, he gets lost in his own thoughts while sketching or painting anyway to give enough fucks about it.

Jeno always responds with a careless shrug, a soft _whatever_ leaving his lips before letting Renjun slip inside with his art materials. If Jeno is in a bad mood, he'll grumble and shoots glares right at him but he won't slam the door on his face, begrudgingly allowing Renjun to stay over for the day.

Renjun really wanted to just stay over for a few hours, just to bask himself in the feeling of being back in his old dorm and Jeno's surprisingly silent presence. They seem to have an unspoken agreement to keep their mouths shut — no more careless insults or curses thrown at each other during the most random moments.

So, really, Renjun didn't mean for any of this to happen.

-

"Where have you been these days? We barely see you anymore!" Donghyuck whines, attaching himself to Renjun and clinging to his arm the moment the older boy slipped out of his last class, dragging another canvas with him. He almost stumbles at the sudden added weight but Jaemin is thankfully around to hold onto his canvas first while Donghyuck continues to complain that he misses Renjun so much.

"We're roommates, Hyuck," Renjun sighs, head spinning after spending so many hours drawing and sketching, fingers already feeling cramped. He tries to stretch his hand but he winces almost too easily, expression morphing to something that resembles pain as he holds it against his chest. He really needs to start taking care of his hands unless he wants to deal with these cramps all the time.

Donghyuck's endless chattering, paired with Jaemin throwing in some comments every now and then is enough to drown out every other sound that bounces off in the building. Renjun almost loses himself in between the voices and words blurring in together if not for a familiar presence popping out of nowhere again.

"Hey, Jen, what are you doing here?" Jaemin is the first to speak up and Renjun is quick to let his gaze flicker over to the intruder. Jeno is wearing a loose black shirt and white jeans with his hair styled up — Renjun would be lying if he said that he wasn't breathless at the sight of him.

"Found this in our dorm a while ago so I just need to give this to, uh," Jeno stops short, cheeks dusted with pink as he holds out an all too familiar black hoodie in his hands. Donghyuck recognizes it immediately, gaze hurriedly flickering over to his best friend but Renjun ignores him, snatching the hoodie from Jeno's hold with reddened cheeks.

"Um, thanks, Jeno."

"No problem, Jun."

Jeno hovers around awkwardly for a few seconds before finally sending a nod of acknowledgement at Renjun, slipping away from the building as soon as possible. No wonder his favorite hoodie was missing this morning — how can he be so forgetful about his belongings lately?

"So," Donghyuck breaks the silence, a mischievous grin playing on his lips as he clasps his hands together, "you and Jeno, huh?"

"Yeah, when the hell did he start calling you Jun?" Jaemin injects into the conversation and Renjun rolls his eyes, cheeks still heating up as he hugs the hoodie against his chest in a protective manner. He tries to run past them but he kind of forgot that Jaemin is much stronger than he looks like — the grip on his arm is sudden and painful so he finally huffs in surrender.

"Are you guys dating?" Jaemin arches an inquisitive eyebrow at him, earning a scoff from Renjun, paired with a look of pure disbelief thrown at his direction.

"No way, what the hell? We're not even friends."

"Aw," Donghyuck throws an arm around his shoulder and coos, pinching his cheek with his hand, "you guys are really back on the first name basis! That's so cute."

"Shut up," Renjun is blushing hard now, the tips of his ears turning red from embarrassment as he tries to walk faster, his pace increasing each second that passes by. He doesn't really want to drown himself in the constant teasing from his friends — he's too exhausted and his heart, as much as he hates to admit it, actually fluttered when Jeno called him Jun a while ago.

He just wants to throw a punch at his own heart, just to try and calm down its erratic beating. Lately, every time anyone mentions Jeno's name or whenever he sets his gaze at the other boy, his heart just goes crazy — jumping to his throat and falling straight to his stomach or swerving in random directions beneath his rib cage, fluttering wildly. He can't really decide if he likes this abrupt change of feelings exploding within his chest.

It's just becoming much harder to say nowadays the words _I hate you_ to Jeno — rather, it's much easier now to say the words _I think I like you_ to Jeno.

-

As far as Renjun knows, Jeno and him are not friends.

Sure, maybe the lines connecting the enemies, strangers, and acquaintances are now blurred together but he's sure as hell that he doesn't consider Jeno as a friend — he knows that Jeno harbors the same amount of feelings so he thinks they finally found a common ground to stand on.

Except Renjun might be wrong.

Ever since Renjun had taken up the opportunity to hang around in his old dorm, staying quiet and taking all his energy to sketch and paint, Jeno's irritation and annoyance seems to dissipate little by little with every visit and knock on the front door. They still don't interact properly once Renjun had made himself comfortable and at home on the couch, art materials set out on the coffee table — just a slight nod or a passing look directed to each other. Renjun is content with the brief interactions, a little splash of happiness exploding within his chest every time their eyes meet or when he sees the small curve on Jeno's lips.

But lately, Jeno is spending a lot of time studying on the couch beside him, glasses perched on his nose and tired eyes flipping through his law books, constantly stifling a yawn from escaping his mouth. The first time Renjun spots him outside of his room with his glasses, he almost spills his paint on the floor with a yelp leaving his lips — he's so sure that his heart made an absolute wreck of itself beneath his rib cage because _wow,_ Jeno is just so breathtakingly beautiful.

Jeno only gazed at him strangely, eyebrow arching slightly before he quietly asks Renjun to scoot over and make space on the couch, dropping his books on the table right beside Renjun's art materials. At first, Renjun was suspicious, gaze constantly flickering between him and his own materials — Jeno would rather be caught dead doing something illegal than let any of his books get the slightest stain of paint. But no insults or glares were thrown at Renjun's direction that day and it sent the older boy's thoughts in a wild whirlwind, swirling around carelessly.

Renjun would have continued to deny it — about how Jeno and him are friends and how his heart isn't a mess because of the other boy — if today didn't happen.

"Here." There's a bag of chips that is dropped on his lap, sending a jolt of surprise straight through Renjun's veins. His hands still from working on his shading, eyes flickering over to the intruder and his throat runs dry almost instantly, cheeks burning.

"You look like you haven't eaten anything for a while," Jeno shifts from one foot to another, coughing to hide his embarrassment as the heat rises to his cheeks before he turns his gaze away, "I know that this doesn't count as a meal but still, please eat something."

Jeno is blushing so hard now that Renjun ends up staring at him with wide eyes, stunned at the sudden sweet gesture. He has always thought that Jeno would be the type to do something sweet and wonderful out of the blue if Renjun is asleep or out but here he is, cheeks colored with a pretty red tint and hands shaking in nervousness.

"Uh, thank you." Renjun finds his voice a moment later and Jeno acknowledges it with a swift nod before he runs straight to his room, almost tripping and stumbling once he gets to the wooden door. Renjun can't help but burst into a fit of soft laughter, a hand clamping over his own mouth to muffle the sound but Jeno picks up the sound easily, head turning to look at him properly. He almost expected Jeno to frown at him but instead, his cheeks turn redder than ever and Renjun can't miss the smile that tugged on the corners of his mouth.

Renjun would be lying if he said that his heart didn't flutter at the sight of Jeno's beautiful smile.

And he would be lying too if he said that he's not elated over the fact that he made Lee Jeno smile like that.

-

"Hey, can I—"

"Stay over since Nana and Hyuck are stuck in your dorm again?" Jeno finishes off the statement, a lopsided grin playing on his lips. Renjun bites his tongue, immediately pushing down the urge to blurt out _no, they're not around but I like making excuses so I can spend some time with you without looking like an idiot who's starting to be whipped for you_.

"Yeah," He resolves to say at the end, failing to fight the urge to curl his own lips into a familiar smile, "so, can I stay over?"

"Okay." The answer comes out fast, smooth and Renjun ignores how his heart practically skipped a beat at the thought of Jeno actually wanting him around. He's supposed to be used to this already — he's been doing this for weeks and Jeno gradually grew warmer with every interaction that happens between them.

He's been spending so much time in this dorm that sometimes, it slips out of his mind that this is not his dorm and he shouldn't be leaving his things behind. The amount of times Jeno has passed by his building or knocked on his dorm to hand over his belongings is just pure embarrassment exploding within his chest.

Renjun did consider asking Jeno if he can switch dorms again since at this point, he might as well be mistaken as Jeno's real roommate because he keeps hanging around too much. But he doesn't want to ruin this — whatever the fuck that they're both experiencing.

When they were roommates, it's like a spell was broken — they wouldn't stop fighting and arguing at all. Every day was just a blur of them arguing over something small, like dirty dishes and leftover paint spilling on the desk but even then, the fights would blow up to the point that the shouts and doors slamming have become some sort of strange lullaby for them both.

Renjun, as much as he used to despise Jeno, doesn't really want to go back to that kind of phase.

Especially when he sees Jeno curving the corners of his lips into a subtle smile every time he witnesses Renjun complain about how his painting isn't turning out as he wanted at the first place. He's sure that he heard Jeno mumble _cute_ right at him and he just froze in mid-sentence, barely able to collect his thoughts and have them for a coherent trail. He stuttered back then, cheeks burning as he forced himself to concentrate on his artwork again, thoughts burning into nothingness.

God, it's just so hard to control the way his heart just wants to tip over and fall — maybe just one more nudge and Renjun would be completely and ridiculously in love with him.

He's not sure if he would like that feeling yet.

-

"You don't have any homework today?" Jeno's voice rings through the air — velvety smooth and easy, the back of his head placed against the couch's headrest. Renjun shakes his head, fingers gripping the pencil in his hold as he furrows his eyebrows, concentrating on correcting the shading he did on his doodle.

Jeno has abandoned his work fully to watch Renjun get lost in his thoughts as he expertly adds lines and curves, creating a magnificent and breathtaking masterpiece — roses blooming in the midst of a garden, a splash of blue, pink, and red starting to color themselves at the edges.

It's become some sort of routine between them — Jeno getting tired of reading too many words on his law books and finding relief in watching Renjun draw and sketch. It doesn't matter if it's only a doodle or a full-on project, Renjun always manages to lose his grip on reality and slip into a world of chaos of colors and an infinity's worth of lines and curves. Since Renjun loses himself so easily to art like that, he never notices how Jeno's gaze lingers on him for a beat too long, a smile always playing just the edges of his mouth.

Or at least, that's what Jeno thinks.

"Why are you staring at me like that?" Renjun mumbles, nose crinkling just the slightest as his brows knit together, concentrating on adding more color onto the page set out before him. Jeno clears his throat, the heat crawling to his cheeks but he doesn't tear his gaze away from him — he even dares to lean in closer to take a proper look at the drawing. Renjun's breath hitches at the slightest when he feels Jeno's soft brown strands lightly brush against his neck and it takes everything in him to bury the feelings that are resurfacing within his chest.

"Nothing," Jeno answers a beat later, eyes flickering upwards before he allows the edges of his mouth to curl upwards to form a smile directed at Renjun, "I'm just fascinated by your drawings. Do you think you can draw me?"

Renjun clears his throat, the corners of his lips twitching just the slightest to form a half-smile, "I only draw pretty things and pretty people, sorry."

"You don't think that I'm attractive?" The hurt is buried underneath Jeno's tone and for a second, Renjun is sure that there's a subtle tug on his heartstrings. There's something completely adorable and endearing about Jeno acting sulky just like this and Renjun won't deny that the butterflies are fluttering crazily in his stomach, rising up slowly to his chest.

"No, I don't." Renjun tries to keep his expression neutral but with Jeno so close to him like this, it's difficult to even try to calm down the erratic beating of his heart. He allows his gaze to flicker over to Jeno and he finds himself unable to hold back the smile lingering just at the edges of his mouth.

"Are you saying the truth?" Jeno is pouting now, bottom lip jutted out and Renjun feels the urge to pinch his cheeks because _god,_ he's just so irresistibly adorable right now.

"Yes." Renjun can feel his resolve begin to crumble, the pieces falling off but he's quick to build himself back up — he's not going to get weak over Jeno acting unknowingly cute to get a drawing of himself.

"How mean," Jeno mumbles, finally giving as his head falls on Renjun's shoulder, snuggling close against Renjun's side with their arms brushing against each other in fleeting and light touches. Renjun can feel his heart rise up to his throat before unceremoniously falling back to his stomach with cheeks heating up, aware of the lack of distance between them now.

"Too bad, I think you're really pretty." His hand stills from coloring the page, the blue shade right on a rose is unfinished as he stares straight ahead, swallowing the lump that formed in his throat.

Did Jeno just called him pretty?

"What?" He asks, his voice a pitch higher than usual and that elicits a laugh from Jeno, his body comfortably resting against Renjun as he buries his face right on the crook of his neck. Renjun freezes up at the contact, heart beating wildly against his rib cage and drowning out all other sounds echoing in the room.

"Pretty," Jeno breathes out, pulling away finally with cheeks dusted with pink and a smile pulling on the corners of his lips, "You're pretty."

Renjun is rendered speechless, blinking fast as his throat runs dry again. He doesn't know what to say — what are you supposed to say to your ex-enemy slash acquaintance (Renjun is sure that they're not on the level of relationship where they can to refer to each other as friends) suddenly compliments you and calls you pretty? He can't think of an appropriate response so he nods slowly, cheeks heating up and coloring themselves in a red tint before his gaze flies back to his drawing.

Somewhere deep inside of him, he's so sure that his heart is fluttering gently, overflowing with an incredible amount of happiness.

-

"You shouldn't be sleeping here." There's a soft voice right beside him and Renjun stirs up from his sleep, head pounding and bleary eyes making a failing attempt to search for a nearby wall clock. When he realizes how dark it is, his head falls back on the arm of the couch, squinting through the darkness instead to steady his gaze on the intruder. Jeno is sitting right in front of him, brows furrowed just the slightest, displaying his worry.

"How long was I asleep?" His voice comes out scratchy, rough at the edges but he doesn't look like he cares about it — he just wants to let those words flow past his lips anyway. Jeno shifts closer until their faces are just a few inches away from each other, his hot breath is utterly distracting and making Renjun's heart stir out of control once again.

"Right after you finished your doodle, you just fell asleep. It's been around four hours already, I think."

"Oh," Renjun mumbles, drifting in and out of sleep as he tries to blink fast to get rid of the exhaustion in his bones, "can I stay over for tonight?"

Jeno hesitates, an unreadable look passing through his eyes before his gaze briefly flickers over where the rooms are. His gaze lingers on them for a beat too long before it travels back to Renjun's clearly tired expression.

"Okay, uh, you can sleep in my room instead since Nana is in his room," Jeno clears his throat, rising to his feet slowly, the sound of his shoes hitting the floor is inaudible despite how silent it is, "I won't be sleeping tonight anyway."

"Okay." Renjun's voice draws out into a yawn, finally rising up from the couch and stretching his arms over his head. When he stands on his feet, he looks lost and confused so Jeno gently presses a hand down his back, guiding him to where his room is at. The amount of times Renjun stumbled or tripped on his way to the wooden door is simply adorable but still, Jeno doesn't want him to suddenly fall on the floor so he keeps a tight grip on him.

"You'll be okay, right?" Jeno finally says once they successfully slipped inside the room without making too much noise. Renjun nods, shoulders dropping as he unceremoniously falls on the bed and in less than a second, he's out again, easily making his way back to dreamland.

Jeno lingers around just for a moment, lips curved into a smile that spells out adoration for the other boy before he makes his way out of the room. He steals a glance at his watch, the numbers _1:34_ in the morning blinks back at him but still, he doesn't feel any sort of tiredness residing in his bones. It's not odd for him to feel wide awake at this hour but now, he's more of in a restless state, as if there's something that's keeping him up.

Or in this case, someone is keeping him up.

Renjun is still sleeping peacefully in his bed so Jeno can't really go back to him and ask him the questions swirling in his head for a while now. Jaemin is asleep too so he can't bother him too.

Jeno would have just fallen asleep on the couch despite the frustration running through his veins if it wasn't for the thought that suddenly pops in his head.

 _Of course,_ he heaves a deep sigh, taking out his phone out of his pocket to search his contacts.

He should at least try his luck, right?

-

"You know, we're technically not allowed up here." Donghyuck's sharp voice breaks through the silence atmosphere in the rooftop, breaking apart Jeno's endless stream of thoughts. Jeno tears his gaze away from the night sky, arching a brow at the other boy before a grin climbs on his lips, shrugging.

"It's fine, I come up here often anyway and no one checks this place out."

"If we get caught and I get thrown out," Donghyuck sniffles, hugging his hoodie close to his body as he approaches Jeno in tiny steps, "I will kill you."

"Sounds like a deal."

Donghyuck settles beside him, pulling the hood over his head before he crosses his arms over his chest, leaning against the ledge.

"What did you want to talk about?"

For a brief second, Jeno hesitates — is this all right? Donghyuck is Renjun's best friend so he's sure that the other boy would never spill the secrets out just because he asked. But still, he needs to take his chance, just in case.

"So, Renjun has been hanging out in my dorm a lot nowadays, right?" Jeno chews on his lower lip, the anxiety building up slowly and starting to travel down his veins as his thoughts collapse on one another.

"Yeah, and?"

"He makes a lot of excuses about you guys locking him out of the dorm and other things? Like the dorm smells like alcohol and being splattered with paint." Donghyuck's eyebrows arch in surprise and Jeno shifts from one foot to another, clearly uneasy now.

"Are all of those true?"

Jeno used to believe in Renjun's excuses of forgetting his key or about Donghyuck and Jaemin hogging up the dorm but he started getting suspicious when Renjun brought up the dorm smelling like alcohol and how it disturbs him that there's spilled paint everywhere. Jeno isn't a completely dense idiot to know that Renjun is just throwing in random excuses and praying that Jeno would buy them without any doubts.

But the question is, _why?_

Donghyuck tips his head back and lets out a laugh, shaking his head quickly afterwards as he throws Jeno a look of disbelief, "are you serious? Nana and I haven't been around in the dorm for that long. We barely even hang around there because Junnie seems to be a little uncomfortable around us being sweet to each other."

"So?"

"Junnie is lying to you. Really thought you would have caught on with his ridiculous lies when he said anything about alcohol since none of us are allowed to drink and he doesn't care whether the dorm is a mess or not." Donghyuck throws him another judgemental look and Jeno is swift to raise his hands in defense, shaking his head.

"I thought of that too! I just wanted to make sure."

"Sure, whatever you say," Donghyuck clicks his tongue and tilts his head, staring out at the buildings stretching out in their view, "kind of weird that he would lie about that though. And he barely lies — he's so bad at lying that anyone would see right through him."

Jeno stays silent, mulling over the words that spilled from Donghyuck's lips. The younger boy perks up, eyes wide before he directs his gaze to the brown-haired male with his eyes twinkling with mischief.

"He made a lot of excuses just so he can stay over at your dorm, huh?" Donghyuck flashes him a teasing grin, voice dripping with playfulness at the edge, "Injun must like you a lot to do that, especially since he knows that he would look like an idiot making up lies and excuses like that."

Donghyuck pushes his body off the ledge, feet already leading him to the door. He's stopped short with Jeno's voice cutting through the air, sharp like a knife.

"Why would you tell me something like that?"

Donghyuck spares him a glance and carelessly shrugs his shoulders, a grin playing on his lips.

"Nana and I can see that you liked him since day one. You two are just a bunch of idiots that suppressed your real feelings and fought over the silliest things," Donghyuck brightens up, flashing another reassuring smile at him, "tell him that you like him. I'm sure Injun would be happy to hear that."

With that, Donghyuck slips through the door and Jeno is left staring at it with cheeks heating up. His head is spinning like crazy but one thought stands out from the rest:

He likes Huang Renjun.

And Huang Renjun likes him back.

Jeno would be lying if he said that he's not drunk on the happiness that burst in his chest that night.

-

The warm sunlight slips through the blinds, illuminating the room in a soft, hazy kind of glow. The heat is more of a gentle caress on Renjun's skin, his forehead creasing a little before his eyes slowly flutter open, squinting through the light. It's still early in the morning and Renjun would have fallen back asleep if it wasn't for the slight movement right beside him.

His gaze immediately flickers over to his side and finds Jeno snuggled up comfortably against him, an arm carelessly thrown around his waist. His head is tucked against the crook of Renjun's neck and his steady, soft breathing sparks an explosion of emotions in his chest as he tries not to make any unnecessary movements.

Jeno's hair is soft, the strands gently brushing against his skin every time the taller boy unknowingly scoots closer as if craving for the warmth radiating off from Renjun's body. The smaller boy is stunned, throat dry and his breath hitching — he wants to pull away but at the same time, he wants to prolong this moment as long as possible.

He clears his throat before slowly turning to his side to face Jeno properly. Renjun can draw out his lovely features with a single glance — every line, curve, and slope is absolutely breathtaking for him to witness with his own two eyes.

"Jeno?" His voice drops into a whisper, clearly hesitant. Jeno grumbles softly, mumbling something incoherent under his breath before his eyes slowly flutter open. It takes a few seconds before Jeno's gaze fixates on him and for the shock to register, his body jerking away in surprise upon realizing the evident lack of distance between them.

"Oh," Jeno's cheeks are coloring themselves in red as the embarrassment settles deep within his bones, blinking rapidly, "I'm sorry. I didn't know that I fell asleep last night."

"It's fine!" Renjun speaks out, voice a pitch higher than normal and he groans, rubbing his face as the heat crawls to his cheeks, "I should be the one saying that. I'm really sorry for overstaying."

He immediately sits up, getting off the bed and Jeno, for some reason, feels the urge to reach out and hold him back because whether he wants to admit it or not, he does miss the feeling of Renjun pressed up against his side. Renjun would have slipped out of the room, if it wasn't for the soft tug on the hem of his shirt. He turns around and finds Jeno staring up at him, so many emotions passing through his eyes, too fast for Renjun to properly decipher each one.

"Can we talk?" Jeno mumbles, cheeks still painted with a bright red tint as he lets go of Renjun's shirt. Renjun narrows his eyes at him, the confusion is obvious through his actions as he slowly sinks down on the bed, right beside Jeno.

The silence is awkward, hanging heavily over their heads. They never really experienced this before — when they were roommates, they were just constantly screaming at each other. When they became ex-roommates, it's always just soft laughs and gentle smiles exchanged between them, starry eyes staring back at each other.

It was never once awkward between them before because they never allowed the silence to settle in like this.

"Um," Jeno shifts a bit so he's facing Renjun with the blush fading slowly from his cheeks, "I talked to Hyuck yesterday."

That earns a confused look from Renjun — his head tilts to the side and his eyebrow arches just the slightest, quietly urging for Jeno to continue speaking. There's another stretch of silence, the sound of their hearts beating loudly in sync might be heard even outside of the room, considering how nervous they are around each other.

"I talked to him about how you kept coming here and staying over. I just... got curious." Jeno hesitates, gaze flickering to somewhere else, anywhere else aside from Renjun's inquisitive glances thrown at his direction.

"I told him that your excuses mostly revolve around him and Nana hogging up the dorm," He pauses for a bit, hand clutching the sheets as he finally braves himself to meet Renjun's unwavering stare, "He was surprised since Nana and him are barely staying around in that dorm anymore so it's mostly empty nowadays."

 _Oh,_ Renjun feels his throat run dry, head spinning from the one thought swirling around and his feet are aching to run straight out of the room, _fuck,_ _he knows._

"I just wanted to know why you want to hang around here." Jeno blinks, gaze falling back to the sheets and eyeing them with great interest, distracting himself from meeting Renjun's eyes again. Renjun is blushing hard now, cheeks colored with bright red as he hugs his stomach, the nervousness traveling in his veins.

"Because I missed having you as my roommate," Renjun can feel his tone drop into a soft whisper, voice still sounding a bit scratchy because it's still early in the morning. He shifts uneasily, turning to face Jeno as well as he grabs a pillow to embrace it against his chest, feeling grateful for the tiny distraction right now.

"I know we used to fight and argue a lot. It reached the point that I refused to believe anyone's claim of you being a total sweetheart because let's be honest, you were an asshole to me." Despite the uneasiness hanging in the atmosphere between them, Jeno ends up eliciting a low laugh at his words and that seems to push away some of the heaviness residing on Renjun's shoulders.

"But you know, even when we're like that, you did have moments when you're... sweet to me," Jeno furrows his eyebrows at him, looking like a confused puppy and Renjun rolls his eyes, one of the corners of his lips curving upwards to form a half-smile, "Don't think that I didn't have any idea of you putting a blanket around me whenever I fall asleep on the couch."

"Oh, that," Jeno coughs, covering up his embarrassment as he moves a little closer to Renjun with a smile lingering at the edges of his lips, "I felt bad every time since you always looked so cold so I had the urge to wrap you up in a hug— I mean, blanket. Yes, a blanket."

Renjun can barely hold himself back from smiling so wide at Jeno's slip of tongue, his eyes turning mischievous at the younger boy.

"And whenever I had difficulty falling asleep before, I used to listen to you humming from other room and it used to lull me to sleep," Renjun blushes hard once again at the impromptu confession escaping his mouth but still, he pushes on relentlessly, "Your presence was really comforting and annoying to me at the same time. I don't know, I guess at the some point, I might have confused my attraction to you for burning hatred so I continued to fight you."

"So, you're attracted to me?" Jeno perks up, clearly elated at the sound of his words.

"No!" Renjun speaks up too quickly, cheeks burning as he hugs the pillow against his chest even more, huffing afterwards, "After everything I said, that's the only thing you picked up?"

"Well, you did say that I wasn't attractive yesterday so..."

"God," Renjun huffs loudly, throwing the pillow straight at Jeno's chest before he crosses his arms, "you're such an asshole."

"Please, call me Jeno." Renjun rolls his eyes and instead of Jeno getting offended at his gestures and words, he simply throws his head back with a laugh. The kind of laugh that makes Renjun feel like his heart will rise to his throat before dropping to his stomach. Renjun can't help but burst into a fit of chuckles too, covering his face with his hands.

The silence falls back after they finish laughing but now, it's more of like a calming presence, embracing them in a comfortable and familiar kind of state. Renjun appreciates the change in their relationship and all he wishes is that they can stay like this for the longest time.

"I feel really bad for being an asshole to you though. For constantly picking on you since the start. I'm sorry." Jeno's voice is genuine with sadness and regret lying underneath it. Renjun can feel one of the edges of his lips curling upwards into a smile but he stops himself, rolling his eyes.

"You should have felt bad before I moved out. Good thing you're cute, I can be more frightening when I'm mad." Jeno arches a brow before he sits cross-legged, elbows placed on his thighs before he cups his cheeks with a grin.

"So," Jeno tilts his head from side to side while still keeping his hands on his cheeks, smiling widely, "you think I'm cute?"

"Shut up, Lee!" Renjun groans, covering his own face with his hands. He can't believe he's actually melting over Jeno's cute actions right now. He can hear the other boy laughing again before he feels fingers gently prying his hands away from his face. His gaze falls on Jeno's expression again and he finds the brown-haired male grinning back at him while holding both of his hands.

"I guess the least that we can do now is start over," Jeno straightens his posture, dropping his hands momentarily before he curves his lips into a polite smile, holding his hand out, "Hi, my name is Jeno. Nice to meet you!"

Renjun finds himself smiling back, eyes crinkling as he holds Jeno's hand, giving it a firm shake.

"My name is Renjun, nice to meet you too."

"Now that we got that out of the way," Jeno flashes a cheeky grin at him, dropping his hand again before he leans forward, catching Renjun off-guard by how close they are, "How about we go on a date so we can learn more about each other? And while we're on that topic, how would you like to move in with me and be my roommate?"

 _Again,_ the word hangs in the air but Renjun gets the message perfectly. Still, he rolls his eyes before he wrinkles his nose with his lips almost betraying a smile to form on his mouth.

"Don't you think we're moving too fast? You just asked me out on a first date and now, you want me to move in? How are you sure that you want to be roommates with me?"

Jeno hums, eyes flickering from the ceiling before they fall back on Renjun, a wide smile playing on his lips.

"I don't know," Jeno reaches out and holds Renjun's hand, gently squeezing it in his grip before he leans in close with a smile forming on his lips again, "I just have a feeling that we'll be wonderful roommates."

-

("No way," Donghyuck stares at him, wide-eyed while Jaemin almost drops his cup of coffee in surprise, "Are you serious?"

Renjun shifts a little, cheeks colored with a pretty red tint as his gaze drops to the floor. Jeno wraps an arm around his shoulder, giving his figure a reassuring squeeze before he flashes a grin at the two shocked boys standing in front of them.

"After weeks of properly discussing it, Injunnie and I finally decided that we should be roommates again," Jeno pauses for dramatic effect, leaning in close to Donghyuck and Jaemin with wide eyes before he breaks into a wide smile, eyes crinkling, "Also, we're dating now! Bye!"

Renjun and Jeno break out into a sudden run, laughing as the frustrated shouts of their friends echo in the open field.

"What the hell?! Come back here, hey! When did you guys start dating?!"

"Yeah, Jen, when the hell did you start calling Renjun as Injun?!")

-

Renjun heaves a tired sigh, bleary eyes staring at the mountain of dishes carelessly left in the sink. He's sure that everything will fall over and break into thousands of pieces if his fingers even dare to brush against the tower.

"Jeno!"

"Renjun!" The voice breaks through the air and Jeno steps out of his own room, his shirt stained with fresh green paint, heaving an exhausted sigh. Renjun has the decency to look embarrassed as he approaches him, frowning at the stain before he glances to meet Jeno's disapproving stare.

"Sorry, I forgot." Renjun mumbles, cheeks turning red as he ducks his head to hide them. That seems to turn Jeno into a soft mess almost immediately, arms already wrapping around his tinier figure and giving him a squeeze before he makes Renjun face him by lifting his chin.

"It's okay, don't be sad now." Renjun grins at him, reaching in for a moment before he jerks away, a small frown forming on the edges of his lips.

"You forgot to do your dishes." Jeno throws a look over Renjun's shoulder, eyeing the dirty dishes before he flashes an apologetic smile at the smaller boy, reaching in to drop a kiss on his forehead.

"You know what? How about I go clean up the dishes now then you can go fix your art materials? After that, we can cuddle and do our homework together." That seems to brighten up Renjun's sullen mood, the smaller boy excitedly reaching up to drop a kiss right on the corner of Jeno's lips. The brown-haired boy is shocked, cheeks heating up but he welcomes the affectionate gesture, leaning down to steal a kiss from Renjun's lips.

"So, is that a deal?" Renjun blushes, teeth catching onto his bottom lip before he flashes another grin, nodding his head quickly.

"It's a deal."

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading! feel free to talk to me in [twitter.](http://twitter.com/jenosaints)


End file.
